Ben Eine, whose work is to be displayed by Virgin Atlantic. Photograph: Freddie Claire/Virgin Atlantic

'Can I interest you in a £15,000 artwork to go with your gin and tonic, madam?" So might Virgin Atlantic cabin crew soon inquire brightly of their "upper-class" passengers (that's Virgin-speak for first class, not posh; though some might question the difference). Richard Branson's airline has come up with a fresh twist in its indefatigable PR campaign: displaying and flogging art at 35,000 feet.

The art in question is by Ben Eine, best known for spray-painting giant Technicolor letters on walls, doors and shutters around London and other cities, and for counting David and Samantha Cameron among his fans. The PM and his wife presented Barack Obama with Eine's painting Twenty First Century City as part of a ceremonial exchange of gifts in 2010. Now Eine appears to have found a new champion. "Branson's a cool dude," Eine tells me. "I did have misgivings at first – I try not to collaborate with brands very often. But I've been interested in Branson for a long time: he's just a genuine, decent guy."

During February, Virgin Atlantic will be displaying 10 works by Eine in its upper-class clubhouses at Heathrow and New York's JFK airport. Upper-class passengers on London to New York flights will also be able to view the works in a "virtual gallery"; watch a film about Eine's practice; and, should the fancy take them, part with between £2,500 and £15,000 to acquire one of the paintings. Anyone feeling particularly flush (perhaps after all that complimentary champagne has worked its magic) can even follow Branson and commission a "pixel portrait" in their own image.

It all seems a far cry from Eine's origins as a street artist; and he does seem a little uncomfortable about the fact that economy passengers won't have the chance to view his work. "I'm not sure why they've done it this way," he says. "To make it more exclusive, I guess. But I fly economy most of the time, and I'd like to be able to see my own paintings."

He has discussed designing sick bags and menus to be used throughout the plane – and hopes the idea of "galleries in the sky" will catch on. "It's a natural extension of the fact that art is no longer just about traditional galleries," he says. "Transatlantic flying is pretty boring. This is an experiment to make that journey a little bit less mundane."